9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.

doc 1/11

Signal Rectification
An important application of junction diodes is signal
rectification.

There are two types of signal rectifiers, half-wave and full-

wave.

Let’s first consider the ideal half-wave rectifier. It is a

circuit with the transfer function vO = f (vS ) :

Ideal +
+
vS (t ) ½ Wave vO (t )
-
Rectifier −

vO
⎧0 for vS < 0
⎪
vO = ⎨
1
⎪v for vS > 0
⎩S

vS

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 2/11

Pretty simple! When the input is negative, the output is zero,

whereas when the input is positive, the output is the same as
the input.

Q: Pretty simple and pretty

stupid I’d say! This might be
your most pointless circuit
yet. How is this circuit even
remotely useful??

A: To see why a half-wave rectifier is useful, consider the

typical case where the input source voltage is a sinusoidal
signal with frequency ω and peak magnitude A:

vs(t)
vS (t ) = A sinωt

t
0

-A

Think about what the output of the half-wave

rectifier would be! Remember the rule: when
vS(t) is negative, the output is zero, when vS(t)
is positive, the output is equal to the input.

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 3/11

The output of the half-wave rectifier for this example is

therefore:
v
A
vO (t)

t
0

vS(t)
-A

Q: That’s the lamest result I’ve

ever seen. What good is half a
sine wave? Why even bother?

A: Although it may appear that our rectifier had little useful

effect on the input signal vS(t), in fact the difference
between input vS(t) and output vO(t) is both important and
profound.

To see how, consider first the DC component (i.e. the time-

averaged value) of the input sine wave:

T
1
VS = ∫vS (t ) dt
T 0
T
1
=
T ∫ A sin ωt dt = 0
0

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

 9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 4/11

Thus, (as you probably already knew) the DC component of a

sine wave is zero—a sine wave is an AC signal!

Now, contrast this with the output vO(t) of our half-wave

rectifier. The DC component of the output is:

T
1
VO = ∫vO (t ) dt
T 0
T
T
1 2
1 A
=
T ∫ A sinωt dt +
0
T T
∫ 0 dt =
π
2

Unlike the input, the output has a non-zero (positive) DC

component (VO = A π )!

v
A vO (t)

VO = A π
t

Q: I see. A non-zero
-A DC component eh? So
refresh my memory,
why is that important?

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 5/11

A: Recall that the power distribution system we use is an AC

system. The source voltage vS(t) that we get when we plug
our “power cord” into the wall socket is a 60 Hz sinewave—a
source with a zero DC component!

The problem with this is that most electronic devices and

systems, such as TVs, stereos, computers, etc., require a DC
voltage(s) to operate!
Q: But, how can we create
a DC supply voltage if our
power source vS(t) has no
DC component??

A: That’s why the half-wave rectifier is so important! It

takes an AC source with no DC component and creates a signal
with both a DC and AC component.

We can then pass the output of a half-wave rectifier through

a low-pass filter, which suppresses the AC component but
lets the DC value (VO = A π ) pass through. We then regulate
this output and form a useful DC voltage source—one suitable
for powering our electronic systems!

A Power Supply

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 6/11

Q: OK, now I see why the

ideal half-wave rectifier
might be useful. But, is
there any way to actually
build this magical device?

A: An ideal half-wave rectifier can be “built” if we use an

ideal diode. ii D

+ vDi − +
+
vS(t) R vO (t)
-

If we follow the transfer function analysis steps we studied

earlier, then we will find that this circuit is indeed an ideal
half-wave rectifier!

vO
⎧0 for vS < 0
⎪
vO = ⎨
⎪v for vS > 0 1
⎩S

vS

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

 9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 7/11

Of course, since ideal diodes do not exist, we must use a

junction diode instead: i (t)

+ +
vD(t)
+
vS(t) R vO (t)
-

Q: This circuit looks so familiar!

Haven’t we studied it before?

A: Yes! It was an example where we determined the junction

diode circuit transfer function. Recall that the result was:

vO
⎧vS − 0.7 for v S > 0 .7
⎪
vO = ⎨
⎪ 0 for v S < 0 .7 1
⎩

vS

0.7 V
Note that this result is slightly different from that
of the ideal half-wave rectifier! The 0.7 V drop
across the junction diode causes a horizontal “shift”
of the transfer function from the ideal case.

Q: So then this junction diode circuit is worthless?

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

 9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 8/11

A: Hardly! Although the transfer function is not quite ideal,

it works well enough to achieve the goal of signal
rectification—it takes an input with no DC component and
creates an output with a significant DC component!

Note what the transfer function “rule” is now:

1. When the input is greater than 0.7 V, the output

voltage is equal to the input voltage minus 0.7 V.

2. When the input is less than 0.7 V, the output voltage

is zero.

So, let’s consider again the case where the source voltage is
sinusoidal (just like the source from a “wall socket”!):

vs(t) vS (t ) = A sinωt

0.7 t

-A

The output of our junction diode half-wave rectifier would

therefore be:

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

 9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 9/11

v
A
vO (t)
0.7 t

vS(t)
-A

Although the output is shifted downward by 0.7 V (note in the

plot above this is exaggerated, typically A >>0.7V), it should
be apparent that the output signal vO(t), unlike the input signal
vS(t), has a non-zero (positive) DC component.

Because of the 0.7 V shift, this DC component is slightly

smaller than the ideal case. In fact, we find that if A>>0.7,
this DC component is approximately:

A
VO ≈ − 0.35 V
π

In other words, just 350 mV less than ideal!

Q: Way back on the first page you

said that there were two types of
rectifiers. I now understand half-
wave rectification, but what about
these so-called full-wave rectifiers?

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 10/11

A: Almost forgot! Let’s examine the transfer function of an

ideal full-wave rectifier:

Ideal +
+
vS (t ) Full-Wave vO (t )
-
Rectifier

vO

⎧−vS for vS < 0 -1

⎪ 1
vO = ⎨
⎪v
⎩ S for vS > 0
vS

If the ideal half-wave rectifier makes negative inputs zero,

the ideal full-wave rectifier makes negative inputs—positive!
For example, if we again consider our sinusoidal input, we find
that the output will be:
v vO (t)
A

t
0

vS(t)
-A

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

 9/13/2005 Signal Rectification.doc 11/11

The result is that the output signal will have a DC component

twice that of the ideal half-wave rectifier!

T
1
VO = ∫vO (t ) dt
T 0
T
1 2
1
T
2A
=
T ∫ A sinωt dt −
0
T ∫ A sinωt dt =
T π
2

v vO (t)
A
VO = 2A π
t

-A
Q: Wow! Full-wave
rectification appears to
be twice as good as half-
wave. Can we build an
ideal full-wave rectifier
with junction diodes?

A: Although we cannot build an ideal full-wave rectifier with

junction diodes, we can build full-wave rectifiers that are
very close to ideal with junction diodes!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS